We were lucky to catch up with Anastasia Ward recently and have shared our conversation below.
Anastasia, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?
At the time, I brashly assumed that because I could draw, I could illustrate, and because I dabbled in flash animation while in school, I was up to the task of animating. So, I applied and sent the company a portfolio of my work. They agreed to take me on under a contract that would see me hand over all copyright claims to my work and work for royalties alone. While I wasn’t thrilled I wouldn’t get paid for the project upfront, I thought the experience of working on the project and having a shiny app to showcase in my budding portfolio would be sufficient payment in case the start-up failed and no royalties were ever awarded to me.
But when I started, I had no idea how much work and time commitment the project would entail. I foolishly believed I would have free rain to draw whatever I wanted and how I wanted. Instead, I soon found myself in meetings with the Art Director, and going over illustration notes from the author. I had sketches to draw and get approved, drawings to change, and animations to plan out and execute.
I was terrified. Drawing took on a new meaning. It was no longer simply fun pretty pictures that friends and family would oow and ah over. It was corporate. It was hard deadlines and learning on the fly. It was faking it till I made it. And I did. After six long months, I emerged knowing that this was the path I wanted to continue down. With all the strife I put myself through, the feeling of completing the project was enough to get me hooked for more.
In the end, I saw not a single penny from the project as the start-up closed its doors about a few months later. But I wasn’t too sad about it. The knowledge I acquired during those six months has continued to shape the way I do things today. They also managed to produce the app, which I hold as a fond reminder of my fumbling beginnings as a children’s book illustrator.
Anastasia, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
My name is Anastasia Ward. I am the owner of Anastasia Ward Illustrations, and like to describe my job as helping people fulfill their dreams. I work mainly as an illustrator assisting authors who have determined that traditional publishing is not for them and instead would like to publish their work as self-published authors. I work with my clients through each step of the self-publishing process, whether it be making sure their manuscript is up to industry standard, helping them with the paperwork of copyrighting their work and purchasing ISBN numbers, illustrations, graphic design work for the book, to finally packaging the book for print. I also sit down with each of my clients to discuss what their goals are for their projects and help them find ways to achieve those goals.
I also work as a graphic designer helping small businesses create packaging, brochures, business cards, and merchandise tailored to their specific needs.
If I were to draw a diagram of how I came to be where I am today, you would see me bouncing around from wanna-be game developer, anthropologist, teacher, freelance artist, business owner, and most currently published author myself. And even though I have worn many hats, I cherish each step of my journey as it has given me an insight into the next.
I am most proud of never giving up on my creative journey. There were many times when I felt that it would never work out, that I didn’t have what it took. But seeing where I am now, and the joy my art brings to people is truly the most gratifying feeling in the world. It makes me hopeful for where this crazy adventure will take me next.
Inspiration-wise, I draw from an eclectic array of sources. I was born in Germany to a German father and a Korean mother and spent the first seven years of my life there. My parents thought it was very important to share both cultures with me, so I spent a lot of time exploring quaint little German towns while at the same time eating kimbap for lunch. From those early years, I developed a fondness for both the realistic depictions of Western classical art and the colorful, simplified forms of Korean children’s book illustrations.
But I also grew up watching anime and playing video games. I learned a lot about storytelling through art and gesture by copying screenshots of my favorite anime and studying drawings by artists in the game industry to learn how they interpreted forms and figures. In more recent times, since most clients are children’s book projects, I enjoy more simplified characters with lots of texture and expressive poses filled with life. Nowadays, I find that social media has helped me quickly absorb a wide variety of styles which allows me to pick and choose features to exhibit in my own work. Through both my semi-realistic work and children’s book work I strive to create believable worlds that are filled with life and interest.
Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?
One critical time I had to pivot away from my art career was the time I had to get a “real job” to aid my then fiancé, now husband, to come to the United States to get married. At the time, I was a few years out of college and still fumbling around art career-wise. I struggled with wanting to grow my freelance career but needing to have a steady income. I decided to take a part-time job at an afterschool program to fill that gap. But it wasn’t enough to show I could support my fiancé financially. I made the hard choice of acquiring a full-time job outside of art.
Since I was working with kids part-time, I decided to pick up a full-time English Language Learners tutoring position with the local school district. At the end of a long day working with kids, I was exhausted and it left little time to work on my freelance art career. It was even harder when I would draw for the children I worked with and they would say I should be an artist. It hurt.
As much as I loved working with my students, I knew they were right. I should have been an artist. And with those words plaguing me, I tried working in freelancing again. I was able to find some projects, but the long days at my day job and the long hours at night soon began to cause health issues and I had to, once again, quit art.
At that point, I saw my art dreams fizzle again. I stopped creating art for a long time in hopes that I would forget about my dreams of becoming a successful artist. But the pain of not creating art continued to nag me. It was only after my daughter was born and my loving husband was able to support us with his income that I once again quit my job and got back to art making.
Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?
While I seem to have found my niche with self-published authors I recently started journeying down that path myself. My husband comes from Egypt and speaks Arabic. When my daughter was born I struggled to find quality materials for her to learn her father’s language. After speaking with my husband about the frustrations we were having, we came to the conclusion I had all the skills required to create quality language-learning content for Arabic-speaking children. So, why not create my own?
In recent years, alongside working with authors, I started creating an interactive series targeted at making Arabic learning fun and engaging. It’s funny because all those times I thought I was leaving art to do something else, I was just learning a skill I would use for my art in the future.
I feel that at this point, this is what I am meant to do for the time being. It provides me with needed energy and momentum knowing that this project can have a lasting impact on so many kids struggling to learn, read, and write their language through quality materials.
My hope is that in the future when I have expanded the work to a few books, I can then work on some interactive apps to further enrich the learning experience. And, in the distant future, I hope to create an educational cartoon series for kids as well. The possibilities are endless!
Contact Info:
- Website: www.anastasiawardillustrations.com
- Instagram: stasiaward_art
- Facebook: Anastasia Ward Illustrations
- Linkedin: anastasiawardillustrator